All the Reason He Needed
by DjDangerLove
Summary: A short Neal and Peter friendship story.


Peter's eyes were starting to cross. The black letters on the files he had been reading over for the past two hours had begun to blur and swirl, reminding him of ink blot pictures that he was sure Elizabeth's father would pull out one day to use to psychoanalyze him. He lifted his left hand and rubbed his eyes in an exhausted attempt to restore his vision. He quit his failing efforts and blinked owlishly out into the white collar division. Only the generated lights were on to illuminate the deserted office and the two lamps in Peter's office lit up the space occupied by the only soul on the twenty-first floor. His stomach suddenly disturbed the silence that had settled over the office since everyone had went home, announcing that it demanded food since it had been deprived since lunch. He gave a tired sigh and looked back down at his work, contemplating on just going home and coming back in a few hours to finish them before the work day started. His pondering was interrupted by a swift movement in front of him causing him to jump back as his heart pounded painfully in chest and shared the undesired feeling with his head. His hand flew over his chest as if to keep his heart from bursting through, but moments later he curled it up into an angry fist when he eyed what had startled him.

"Neal." He grounded out, shaking his head with frustration. "What are you doing here?"

The conman grinned at him, his eyes too bright and attentive for seven minutes past twelve in the morning in the agent's opinion, but Peter had also seen them dulled down to an almost lifeless quality. He just couldn't decide which entangled Neal into trouble more.

"What are _you_ doing here, Peter?" Neal questioned in return with a blink that Peter actually caught sight of, revealing that the energy the younger man possessed was just another false exterior Neal displayed. Peter pretended to believe it.

"I'm finishing up some paperwork that I've gotten behind on because of our last case."

Neal's eyebrows lifted as he widened his eyes, whether it was a psychical reaction to Peter's reply or an attempt to rid himself of the exhaustion that was threatening to tear down his facade, the agent couldn't be sure. Neal nodded his head, but didn't say anything. He just grinned at him from the other side of the desk.

Peter grinned back, more with curiosity than amusement. "So what are _you _doing here, Neal?" He mimicked, but acted as if it was the first time he had posed the question.

"Trying to find you." The younger man replied in a way that suggested Peter's common sense had failed him. The agent in turn, questioned Neal's common sense.

"So instead of calling me you just decided to randomly show up at the office to see if I was here at twelve o'clock in the morning?"

Neal screwed his face up at the ridiculous suggestion while shaking his head. "No." He quietly laughed. "I went to your house first and Elizabeth told me you were still here."

"You went to my house at twelve in the morning? Why? Why didn't you just call me?" Peter countered as Neal's explanation became more confusing than the files on his desk.

"No, Peter, I did not go to your house at twelve in the morning. It was more like around ten."

Suddenly Peter didn't care so much as why Neal had been looking for him or why he hadn't called him. "Have you been at my house since then?"

Neal rolled his eyes. " No."

Peter's exhaustion was slowly creeping up again. He leaned forward on his arms that rested on his desk. "Well, what have you been doing for the past two hours?"

Neal straightened in his seat before bending down to pick something up off the floor.

"Peter, do you know how hard it is to find a place that sells deviled ham sandwiches at midnight within my two mile radius?"

Peter raised an eyebrow at him when the younger man raised back up holding a small brown paper bag with mild disgust. "I'm guessing not as easy as I think it should be."

"Exactly." Neal replied, tossing the bag onto Peter's desk before letting his face split into a proud grin. "You're welcome."

Peter chuckled and shook his head while reaching into the bag and pulling out his favorite kind of sandwich. "Thanks, but you didn't answer my original question."

Neal leaned forward and pulled the file out from under Peter's elbows so he could look over it. "Which was?" The consultant tried to ask as if he really didn't know. Peter took a bite of his sandwich with a roll of his eyes.

"You know exactly what it was. Why were you looking for me?"

Neal didn't look up from the file. "Peter, I knew that you had to catch up on some files so me being your partner I felt obligated to help you out."

Peter abruptly stopped chewing then swallowed thickly. Seconds passed as he silently stared at the man sitting on the other side of his desk, eventually causing Neal to look up. "What?" The consultant tried to pass off with an airy laugh. Peter put his sandwich down.

"Neal." Peter said his name in that tone that always made Neal swallow thickly and straighten his shoulders. The agent waited for him to do so before continuing. "Please just tell me whatever it is that you've done will not require me to put you behind bars or fight to keep you out if I am willing."

He watched the corner of Neal's mouth lift and knew whatever Neal would say next would be the truth, but without the part that made Peter's forehead crease with frustration.

"I haven't done anything like that." Neal's grin broadened with Peter's growing anxiety.

Peter opened his mouth to respond, but the sound of his cell phone cut him off. He eyed his consultant, silently telling him not to move because their conversation wasn't over.

"Burke."

"_Heyyyy, Honey." _Elizabeth's voice drug out over the phone, reminding Peter of the all to familiar tone she spoke with when she took Neal's side on something. "_How's it going? Are you almost ready to come home?"_

Peter gave a long sigh. "Yes, I think so. I should be home within the hour."

"_Oh! Well... that's good."_ Came his wife's reply before an awkward silence settled in.

"El?" Peter questioned.

"_Oh, um, well I was just calling to see how things were going?...Is Neal there?" _

_And there it is_, Peter thought to himself while rubbing a hand down his face.

"Yes, he is here. And no, I don't know what trouble he's caused or buried himself in this time, but whatever it is, I promise you'll be the first to know if I throw him back in prison or just decide to dump him in a ditch somewhere _without_ his anklet." Peter glared at Neal, who just kept his nose in the file.

"_Oh_ _Honey, don't worry. There's been worse._" El laughed. "_But I'll let him tell you. Love you. Bye."_

"Bye, Hon." He replied, before hanging up and tossing his phone down on the table while staring at his consultant. "Neal." The younger man didn't look up. "Give me that." Peter grabbed the folder from Neal's hands forcing the man to look at him. "What is it?"

"What's what?" Neal tried.

"You know damn well what." Peter responded, but his voice lacked any real anger. "Just tell me, Neal."

Neal sighed and folded his hands in his lap while relaxing in his chair for the first time since he sat down. "Before I say anything, do you have a good plumber? Because if not, Mozzie knows this-"

Peter had started shaking his head the moment Neal said plumber. "No. I don't even have a plumber. I'm capable of fixing my own house. Why are you asking me about a plumber?"

Neal grinned, but the forced innocence that formed it made Peter close his eyes and take a deep, calming breath. "You know how you were wondering why I didn't just call you earlier?"

Peter froze. "You're telling me that-"

"It was an accident. I had put it on the counter and after I washed my hands, I grabbed the hand towel which I put my phone on and it...fell into the toilet." Neal explained.

Peter laughed. "So it fell in. Why are you asking me about plumbing? It's not like you flushed it."

Neal winced and slowly opened his mouth.

Peter's jaw dropped. "How does that even happen? How do you even manage to do that?"

"It fell down into the little hole and we couldn't see it or reach it, so Elizabeth suggested that we flush it and try to catch it when some of the water was pushed out. Unfortunately, water was the only thing that got pushed out and my phone well..."

Peter sighed and ran his hand across his face again while laughing. Whether it was from humor or just tired frustration, neither man was sure. "Unbelievable." Peter put away the files and stood up while sliding his jacket on before packing up the rest of his sandwich.

* * *

><p>Both men stood in silence as they waited for the elevator.<p>

The box above the doors told them it was on the sixteenth floor when suddenly a thought occurred to Peter. "If you dropped your phone in the toilet at my house, then that means you could have called before ever going there."

Neal glanced at him out of the corner of his eye and nodded. "Yeah. I guess so."

Peter turned towards him with narrowed eyes. "So why did you go to my house?"

The elevator dinged as soon as Neal's all too familiar grin appeared on the younger man's face, making Peter's gut twist up again.

"You know how Mozzie kept that equipment we used to make those synthetic rubies?"

"Oh God." Peter groaned while rubbing his index finger and thumb over his eyes before shoving Neal into the elevator. "You better have a damn good reason why I shouldn't just put you both in prison."

Peter watched Neal's grin widen as Neal looked at him with mischief shinning in his bright, blue eyes, but after the younger man blinked some of the mischief had faded revealing the trust that the younger man had in him and the desire for Peter's friendship despite everything.

Staring back at him was all the reason he needed.

AN: just a short story that I wrote while doing laundry. You can decide what Neal and Mozzie are up too. :) thanks for reading


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